One of the overarching conflicts in Ayn Rand’s, Anthem, is Collectivism versus the belief in Heresy. Rand is a firm believer in heresy, making her one of history's most notable heretics. In the same way Anthem is bias, so is my ‘Big Idea’ collage. I used propaganda and symbolic images to express the importance and just within heresy. The two silhouettes of a human heads serves the significance of the seemingly everlasting conflict that both groups have. All the images that make up the silhouettes is what the different parties stand for. Equality’s rebellious views and experiments, such as ‘the power of the sky’ and the sacred manuscripts, are enclosed within the traced head on the right side. On the other side, I dissected the authority in
this society’s thoughts and reflected them on the images shown. The Council of Scholars, the Teachers, and other controlling forces in Anthem are represented on the left. Coincidentally, the authority’s side has less depiction to demonstrate the small-minded and brainwashed views, leaving the right side to appear as strongly noble and rational. I used the vast array of fonts to emphasize the imperfections inside not only the society but the ideas themselves. Finally, the big text at the top of the page that reads, ‘Heresy will prevail’ has the objective of Rand’s meaning of Equality’s purpose.
Ayn Rand's classic story of one man's desire to become an individual in a nameless society presents a compelling refutation of collectivism in all forms. The hero, labeled "Equality 7-2521" by the State, chooses to challenge conventional authority as he learns the joys of experimentation and discovery, the ecstasy of human love, the challenge and fairness of liberty, and the happiness of self-interest. Equality 7-2521 writes three unique phrases in his journal: 1. "My happiness needs no higher aim to vindicate it. My happiness is not the means to an end. It is the end.", 2. "We know that we are evil, but there is no will in us and no power to resist it.", 3. "The word 'We' . . . must never be placed first within man's soul.". These phrases will be discussed individually in the remainder of this essay.
The books starts out with someone writing a journal, he states that it is a sin to write what he is writing because it is a sin to have any thoughts that any of the others do not think. His name is Equality7-2521 and he always refers to himself as “we” or “us”. He explain how he and his “friend”, even though preference of one person over another is not permitted by the Council, find an old tunnel wile doing there job sweeping the street behind the theater. He tells Internationl4-8818 (his friend) to promise not to tell anyone about the tunnel. In this journal he tells how he was different growing up because he was smart, and would question things until his teachers forbade it. He explained how he wanted to be assigned to the Home of Scholars, who developed all the technology for the society, which would be his job for the rest of his life. Instead he was assigned to the House of Street Sweepers.
In the novel, Anthem, written by Ayn Rand takes place when mankind has entered another dark age. A man named Equality 7-2521 lives in a society where he struggles to live equal within the brotherhood. In the world he lives in people are told they exist only for the sake of serving society, and have no other purpose. Therefore, each individual is assigned a vocation as a permanent life career which determines who they socialize and live with. However, Equality being very different from his brothers, believes in individualism and rejects the collectivism society around him. The concept of individualism vs collectivism is portrayed in the story because individuality is unknown to the people where no one is unique or excellent in any way. The people
A captivating novelette in which a man’s priority is to serve only for his brothers, Ayn Rand’s Anthem illustrates a society that has suffered the ghastly consequences of collectivism. She depicts an oppressive culture in which the word “I” is unheard of and men belong to the collective “We.” Men’s lives are determined through the Council of Vocations, a group that maintains a powerful dictatorship by subjugating the public from the beginning of their lives. The idea that “If you are not needed by your brother men, there is no reason for you to burden the earth with your bodies” (Chapter 1) has been forced into average mindset of the vehemently maintained society. In contrast, Rand mocks the totalitarian civilization through the main character Equality. Since he was born, Equality possessed a quick mind and constantly strayed apart from his peers. Through his life, he shows an unwilling behavior to conform not only to his name, but also to the rules of society. After he is found guilty of independent thought, he is sadistically beaten and dragged into the Palace of Corrective Detention, an unguarded jail that castigates the public of their wrongdoings. Shackles are unnecessary as a result of the brainwashed society and their compliance to obey orders, which consequently allows Equality to escape. In a collective society, citizens are denied their inalienable right of individualism, which ultimately eliminates all thoughts of opposition. Through their submission, the presence of their souls vanishes and society deems the collectivist tenet true. The lack of guards and old locks in the Palace of corrective Detention symbolize the evils that result from a collectivist society.
According to Dictionary.com freedom means “the state of being uncontrolled by another, or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint.” Freedom. What does freedom mean to you? Even though freedom means the state of being uncontrolled by another, or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint, I believe that freedom means being able to accomplish what you desire and when you desire it without anyone saying anything, by reason of the comparison and contrast of our society and the society in the book Anthem by Ayn Rand, the negation of the word freedom, and synonyms of the word freedom. I believe that you should accept the consequences of the actions you take when you have your “freedom” as well.
Anthem, by Ayn Rand, is a very unique novel. It encircles individualism and makes the reader think of how people can conform to society and do as they are told without knowing the consequences and results of their decisions. Also, it teaches the importance of self expression and the freedom that comes along with being your own person and having the power to choose what path to take in life. Figurative language is used often in this book and in a variety of quotes that have great importance to the theme, plot, and conflict of the novel.
“For I know what happiness is possible to me on Earth. And my happiness needs no higher aim to vindicate it” (Rand 95). In this part of the novella, Equality, the narrator, is aware that he can find his own happiness and he should show it once it is found. Throughout the novella, Anthem written by Ayn Rand, Equality is trying to find himself in a society full of equals. As he discovers the tunnel, Equality creates a light bulb in which he wants to flaunt upon the people of his society. Subsequently, when it is rejected by the Council, he hides in the forest from those who see him as a betrayer. Equality tries to find himself in a collectivist society that he knows he does not belong in, in which he evolves. The author believes in objectivism,
The society in Anthem is a very collectivist society, thus a single individual’s health and survival might not be as important as with an objectivist “society”. However, the society in Anthem does address health and survival in a collectivist way. By having the Old Ones not work and “the State take care of them” this society deals with one of the biggest health problems, old people (7). This society takes a socialist method of health care and the State provides for all of the Old Ones which shows how they are meeting the needs of health and survival. The society takes a different approach on survival. Because of the strong collectivism, individual lives do not matter and “there are no men but only the great WE”, as long as the WE survives any one person can die and the society will not care (3). Anthem’s society takes survival to mean the survival of the whole not the individual. This shows that society is not needed for the individual’s survival, as not only does this society provide little individual health care, Equality 7-2521 in the later part of Anthem is easily able to
Ayn Rand’s Anthem is a politically satirical novel is set in a future society that is so highly collectivized that the word “I” has been banned. The world is governed by various councils who believe that man’s sole reason for existence is to enforce the Great Truth “that all men are one and that there is no will save the will of all men together” (Rand, 20). Any indication of an individual’s independent spirit is swiftly and brutally put down, with the transgressors being punished with severe prison sentences or even death.
The values at risk in Anthem are not merely those of the central luminary; they are the ostensible values of an entire civilization—our own. Our society is founded upon the notion of individual rights; its existence, as Ayn Rand depicts, cannot be conceived on any other grounds. Anthem, Rand’s dystopian novella, is about us, and about what will happen if we do not follow alongside Equality 7-2521 and Liberty 5-3000 in their discovery of the importance of individualism.
Question: Aside from very rare exceptions there is literally no opposition to the leaders in this society. Why is this? What ideas must the people in this society have accepted to live a life of obedience, drudgery, and fear?
What truly happened that morning in Miss. Narwin’s class? Here is the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Philip wanted to be on the track team, but he was failing English, so he couldn’t try out. Then, Philip gets Miss. Narwin as his new homeroom teacher (hating her for falling him and not letting him try out for the track team) results him in wanting to figure out a way to get transferred out of her class. This caused Philip to hum during the National Anthem a time when it’s demanded to be quiet, which resulted in Philip getting sent to the assistant principal’s office. Then, Philip told the truth, and resulted into him being suspended. This caused chaos making him the subject of national media attention, which resulted in twisting things
Every individual’s motivations can vary in numerous ways. All the characters in Anthem, written by Ayn Rand, face many struggles, but have their primary sources of motivation to help them continue through the hard times. The main character, Equality, accidentally creates an invention without knowledge that it would lead him towards his new style of life. Although his creation isn’t his primary motivation, it opens up his eyes about other aspects of life that are missing from his lifestyle. Equality himself, and his curiosity are his own primary motivation, he has the right to be motivated in this way because his curiosity is what ables his mind to wonder what his life could be like if it wasn’t controlled by other people.
An individual’s motivations may appear to be justified by those around them given situations they are put in. This is because in life, everyone get curveballs and it’s a choice whether to want to try and hit them because there could be potential home-run or to not hit it because it’s not the type of ball that was desired. It solely depends on how bad an individual is motivated to see the outcome of that hit. A prime example of this statement appears numerous times in the novel, Anthem by Ayn Rand. Equality, a twenty-one-year-old with a curious spirit, residing in an extremely dystopian-like civilization, swims against the current that is the lifestyle the rest of the citizens choose to live and abide by. Undoubtedly the motivation behind the madness of Equality’s “unusual” behavior, logic, plus rebellion contrary to what his draconian culture thinks, was the simple fact that Equality admired learning and using his intelligence to the best of its capability.
In the book Anthem, by Ayn Rand, Equality-72521 stood alone from the crowd of mindless slaves, and was frowned upon. I think that Equality is right to denounce his leaders because of the secrets that this society has kept from everyone, and the fact that he cannot live a life of freedom and individualism. I also believe that Equality-72521 would fully agree with Rand’s short essay, How Does one Lead a Rational Life in an Irrational Society.